JRN400, SpartanOnlineNewsroom, Fall2012Michigan State University School of Journalism     Tuesday/Thursday 9:30–11:20 a.m.  Classrooms: 184, 236, 237, 243 CASFriday 10:20 a.m.–12:10 p.m.  Classroom: 1281 Anthony Hall

WelcomeWe’re really excited you’re in JRN 400 this semester because you’re part of something new in the J-School. In this class, we want you  to embrace an innovative spirit, think critically and reevaluate storytelling approaches. The collaboratively focused class will push you to challenge the definition of news through crowdsourcing and publishing in-depth multimedia projects found in digital magazines and rich websites. You’ll be rewarded for your passion and innovative spirit in this capstone class. Get ready to work hard — and have a blast doing it.

InstructorsDr. Serena Carpenter | carp@msu.edu | @drcarpOffice hours: 344 CAS, Tuesday/Thursday 1:30–3:30 p.m. — available via Google Hangout or Gchat

Darcy Greene | greened@msu.edu | @darcygreeneOffice hours: 356 CAS, Tuesday/Wednesday 3–5  p.m., or by appointment

Cheryl Pell | pell@msu.edu | @cherylpell Office hours: 302 CAS, Monday/Wednesday 10:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m., or by appointment

Jeremy Steele | jws@mipamsu.org | @jwswrites                                                                    Office hours: 338 CAS, Monday/Wednesday 1–3 p.m., or by appointment

Course Objectives

To research and engage communities To cover issues at an in-depth level To write and edit for an online audience To apply the editing process To collaborate in teams To experiment with different forms of storytelling To practice the fundamentals of design and visual communication To prepare for jobs that don’t exist (e.g., freelance, intrapreneurship, innovate) To reinforce skills (e.g., image editing and composition, coding, audio recording) To market, promote and publish your work

Student work will be published throughout the semester on the class website, http://news.jrn.msu.edu/jrn400f2012/. Work of exceptionally high quality will then be produced into an innovative website, a digital magazine (app) and/or possibly a print publication. Our hope is this work will be entered in journalism contests.

EtiquetteThere are some things we think are important in order for us all to have a successful, positiveexperience, and here they are:

Please don’t disrupt class time with ringing cell phones, text messages, private conversations, etc.

And here’s a big one: We don’t want you to use your laptop, cell phone or iPad, unless one of the lead instructors says to go for it. We all like Facebook and Twitter, but there’s research here and here that says we can’t do two or more activities equally well at the same time.

Please be on time to class. It’s the right thing to do, and it counts toward your team participation points.

Respect your team members, instructors and guests whenever they’re speaking. Participate in class. It will make a difference.

Course ChangesOur industry changes every day. Change is what we do. So be ready because class assignments and lectures could change if the situation warrants it. We might need to move the schedule around a bit, or rethink a certain assignment, but we’ll give you notice.

Class ScheduleOn Tuesdays and Thursdays, you will be in your labs in Comm Arts. Along with regular lab work, on Tuesdays, you will attend budget meetings, and on Thursdays you will attend Quick Hits. All teams will meet together on Fridays in 1281 Anthony Hall.

Attendance    Consider this your workplace. You need to show up on time. Although we don’t excuse absences, you can miss three classes. Any absences beyond those three classes will result in a reduction of your grade. Excessive tardiness will be counted as an absence.

DeadlinesIt’s what we’re about. Deadlines rule. Homework is due at the beginning of each class, unless otherwise specified. Just don’t ask to turn assignments in late. Assignments that miss deadline will not receive full credit. Keeping up is really important in this class. You’ll be learning great new technology and applications almost every week. So if you wait to do your assignments at the last minute and the technology is new to you, there is a good chance you will be under a lot of stress this semester. Plan to give yourself enough time to be able to ask questions of the instructors or your team members if you don’t understand something, or get good at troubleshooting problems. Plan ahead!

Supplies and Equipment

Required EquipmentYou probably already have many of these:

Google account with professional name. We will be using Google Docs extensively to access shared class resources and manage much of the text-based work you produce this semester. (Your account name should be professional.)

Portable external hard drive of at least 100GB, Mac or Mac/PC compatible. Try to buy it within two weeks. If you are a video person, you may want to purchase a FireWire 800 rather than a USB. Suggested brands: G-Force (Technology) or Maxtor. Do not buy a drive with the connector permanently attached because it is difficult to store safely. Some people have had problems with Western Digital, LaCie and Iomega, but it’s up to you. Where to buy? Try online (B&H Photo Video, TigerDirect, Apple store, Newegg, Amazon) or local stores (Best Buy, Staples, Office Max).

Headphones. Any standard headphones will work for this class. Three-ring binder. There are numerous handouts provided for this class because no text is

required. You will find them on Google Docs. Please print out handouts prior to class to take notes. AP Stylebook (the newer, the better)

Recommended Equipment

Smartphone (which in many cases can serve as a camera, video camera, audio recorder, etc.) Video camera (e.g., Kodak Zi8) Consumer digital camera or SLR iPad External lavaliere microphone

You will be able to check out school equipment, which includes Sony mini HDV camcorders (some tape-based, some flash memory based), tripods, handheld mics, lav mics and mic cables. People who have been trained in using more complicated equipment can seek special permission checkout privileges.

Equipment can be checked out from Room 134. Equipment can be reserved by stopping in, by calling 517-355-4463 or checking out equipment

online at reserve.cas.msu.edu. Hours are 8 a.m.–10 p.m. Monday–Thursday; 8 a.m.–5 p.m. Friday; and noon–10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you have all of the necessary equipment, not the lab employee’s.

Please report equipment, studio, printer or computer problems to your team and then college IT staff immediately at http://www.infotech.cas.msu.edu/help.html  

ReadingsReadings are provided by your instructors to help you better understand the material. Part of your job is to look ahead to the next class period to determine what should be read for that day’s class.    

Assignments & GradingYou will be given in-class assignments and exercises, as well as out-of-class assignments. Unless specified in the syllabus, all work must be turned in at the beginning of class.

We will be developing a file sharing system where all work should be saved. You may also want to save a backup on your external drive and/or your laptop. We all know someone who has lost hours of work because they didn’t back their files up. You could also use free cloud storage services such as Google Drive (5GB), Dropbox (5 or 18GB), Apple iCloud (5GB) and Amazon Cloud Drive (5GB) for backup.

You will not all have the same assignments — which may be very different from what you’re used to in journalism classes. We are operating in a collaborative environment and will need reporters, editors, multimedia producers, designers, social media producers and more. Your work will draw on the skills you’ve learned throughout your career at MSU. We will operate as teams. For the sake of the team, pull your own weight because your effort is part of your team participation points.

G+ class circle All four sections of the class will be expected to share their work and thoughts on the class circle page. This is also a space where you can share resources that you feel will be useful for your classmates. This closed circle is designed to only be viewable to your classmates — however, as with all social media, assume that anything you post could become public.

Tumblr postsEach topic team will contribute to a Tumblr blog. This space should reflect class community and reflection. You are encouraged to post some assignments, photos of the class, photos of you or colleagues reporting in the field, slideshows, quotes, extended audio or video interviews, etc. All students will be expected to participate in this space.

Grading ScaleIt will take a lot of hard work and skill to get a 4.0, but you’ll have various opportunities to succeed, and we want you to! We will use the following grading scale:

4.0 = 93–100 percent

3.5 = 87–92 percent3.0 = 80–86 percent2.5 = 75–79 percent2.0 = 70–74 percent 1.5 = 65–69 percent1.0 = 60–64 percent0.5 = 50–59 percent0.0 = 0–49 percent

Required assignments — Total points: 300 pointsPoint totals represent total points possible. Points awarded will be determined by instructors based on quality of work, ability to meet deadline, time commitment required and other factors. More detailed information about required assignments is available in an appendix to this syllabus.

•  Online package or multimedia promotion: 100 points •  Multimedia interpretation of topic piece: 50 points•  Portfolio 100 points•  Photoshop portfolio banner or logo 20 points •  Quick Hit attendance 30 points•  Final Project: Multimedia website or digital magazine (Earn points through Optional Assignments)

Optional assignments — Minimum total points: 300 pointsStudents will be required to attempt a minimum of 300 optional points. All assignments must be instructor approved. You may earn more than the minimum of 300 points. Point totals represent total points possible. Points awarded will be determined by instructors based on quality of work, ability to meet deadline, time commitment required and other factors. More detailed information about optional assignments is available in an appendix to this syllabus.

▶CONTENT GENERATION

Additional online packages (work individually or in teams to complete all elements)o Lead story element (can be text-based or visual) 50-100 pointso Additional story elements (from Package Planning Guide)

Text-based sidebar 20 points ASF (alternative story form) or Graphic 20 points Multimedia (dependent upon quality and work) 20-100 points Links (dependent upon research quality and work) 20 points Engagement 20 points

Stand-alone ASF or Graphic o ASF 20-50 pointso Graphic 20-50 points

Stand-alone Photographyo Photo 20-50 pointso Gallery 50-100 points

Stand-alone Multimedia (video, photo/audio slideshow, etc.)o Multimedia 20-100 points

Engagemento Crowdsourced article 50 pointso Social media producer 100 points

▶EDITING

Copy editing — online package main story 10 points Copy editing — online package elements 5 points

▶DESIGN/PRODUCTION

WordPress websiteo Webmaster 50 points

Digital magazineo Stylesheet creator 50 pointso Story/Page design 50 pointso App Producer 150 points

Multimedia websiteo Website coder 150 points

▶LEADERSHIPAdditional leadership positions may be created as needed throughout the semester.

Team Leader/Editor 200 points Copy Chief 150 points App Lead Designer 150 points Website Lead Designer 150 points Multimedia Editor 50 points Photo Director 50 points Community Engagement Director 50 points

▶Instructor Discretion 100 pointsInstructors may award additional points at their discretion for work that goes above-and-beyond assignment requirements.

Important InformationThe School of Journalism adheres to the policies on academic honesty as specified in General Student Regulations 1.0, Protection of Scholarship and Grades, and in the all-University Policy on Integrity of Scholarship and Grades. (See Spartan Life: Student Handbook and Resource Guide and/or the MSU website: www.msu.edu.)

Academic Honesty: You will be expected to abide by the J-School Code of Ethics and Standards, http://bit.ly/MSUJRNcode.

Students are expected to do their own work on all assignments. Students who cheat, fabricate or plagiarize will receive a 0.0 on the assignment and may fail this course. Plagiarism means the appropriation of another person’s ideas, processes, results or words without giving proper credit.

Article 2.3.3 of the Academic Freedom Report states that "the student shares with the faculty the responsibility for maintaining the integrity of scholarship, grades, and professional standards." In addition, the School of Journalism adheres to the policies on academic honesty as specified in General Student Regulations 1.0, Protection of Scholarship and Grades; the all-University Policy on Integrity of Scholarship and Grades; and Ordinance 17.00, Examinations. (See Spartan Life: Student Handbook and Resource Guide and/or the MSU website: www.msu.edu.)

Contact your instructor if you are unsure about the appropriateness of your course work. (See also http://www.msu.edu/unit/ombud/dishonestyFAQ.html )

Classroom Conduct: Students are expected to conduct themselves in an appropriate manner in the classroom. As noted in the University’s Code of Teaching Responsibility, this involves “the right of faculty members to conduct classes, and of students to participate in those classes, without interference or disruption.”  Additionally, section 2.3.5 in the “Academic Freedom for Students at Michigan State University” report states that, “the student’s behavior in the classroom shall be conducive to the teaching and learning process for all concerned.”   If a student’s behavior is so disruptive that it interferes with the teaching and learning process, the student may be required to leave the classroom and could be referred to the student judicial affair’s office for a disciplinary hearing.

Religious Holidays: If you wish to be absent from class to observe a religious holiday, please make arrangements with your instructor in advance.

Absences for Official University Activities: If you miss class to participate in a required activity for another course, provide the instructor with adequate advanced notice and a written authorization from the faculty member of the course.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities: Michigan State University is committed to providing equal opportunity for participation in all programs, services and activities. Requests for accommodations by persons with disabilities may be made by contacting the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities at 517-884-RCPD or on the web at rcpd.msu.edu. Once your eligibility for an accommodation has been determined, you will be issued a Verified Individual Services Accommodation ("VISA") form. Please present this form to your instructor at the start of the term and/or two weeks prior to the accommodation date (test, project, etc.). Requests received after this date may not be honored.

Drops and Adds: The last day to add this course is the end of the first week of classes. The last day to drop this course with a 100 percent refund and no grade reported is Sept. 24. The last day to drop this course with no refund and no grade reported is Oct. 17. You should immediately make a copy of your amended schedule to verify you have added or dropped this course.

Required Assignment Details ▶REQUIRED Online Package: 100 pointsYou will report at least one online story package under your team’s topic. This package will include multiple elements (our JRN 400 Package Planning Guide will help you through that process). The main story element for this assignment must be text-based. (You will have the opportunity with other assignments to produce packages in which the main element is video-, photo-, design- or multimedia-based.)

Please keep in constant communication with your team to ensure you are not reporting about the same subject and using the same sources as others.

A common mistake of reporters is that they cite a few sources and produce their content around those sources. This package is an in-depth piece. Your goal should be to inform and educate our audience on this topic. We must learn something from your piece, which requires primary research. Primary research requires citing original material, not sources cited by someone else (secondary research). You must verify the information presented to you by your sources. Do not wait until the last minute. Work with your editor to create an exceptional piece. Instructors will grade your work after its been through a peer-editing process. Failure to address issues raised by your editors will affect your grade.

Once your work has been through the editing process — which may require you to complete additional reporting or do rewrites — your work will be published on the class website. Exceptional work may be used in the final project.

The article should include: Research

Examples are linking to primary sources used, including data, doing shoe-leather reporting (you could count how many restaurants are located within two blocks of the school in the East Lansing area that offer sub sandwiches), and speaking with experts.

Articles should not contain a large amount of opinionated information from sources. Never assume. Read each sentence and determine whether that information is an assumption.

Diversity of sourcesCiting only the opinion of people with no direct experience with the issue will result in a low grade. Think about each source and what that person is adding to your audiences’ understanding of the issue. Your classmates, friends, roommates and family should not be sources for this package. If you have a question about a source, talk to your instructor.

Educational informationProvide specifics and details. Don’t say: “More people than ever are resorting to sleep aids.” Back it up with statistics and comparative data. “The sale of over-the-counter sleep medication has risen more than 25 percent in the last three years, according to data from the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America.”  

In addition to the package elements detailed on the Package Planning Guide, you should include the following:

Headline — Remember to include keywords. Summary deck — This is one to two sentences summarizing the article. Your byline Dateline (if it applies) — LANSING — Article begins … Subheads (if necessary) — Break up lengthy articles. Be literal. A list of steps you took to engage with the community and sources (both online and offline) to

complete this story Contact information for all sources

Along with your main story, provide the following elements (See Online Package Planning Guide):

ASF or Graphic Multimedia — may include photos, videos, etc. Links to addtional information Engagement

Once your project is completed, be prepared to share something about your experience reporting this package on your team’s Tumblr. This could include interviews or materials that did not make it into your final package, extended interviews, a behind-the-scenes narrative about your experience or other relevant information.

▶REQUIRED Multimedia Promotion: 100 pointsOne or two people per topic team will create a promotional piece that must contain multimedia that promotes the final project. Creativity is key in this exercise. The piece should be emotionally engaging and have the “share” factor. You will have to research the topic, your audience and interview people related to the final project topic. Share your ideas with your instructor and seek approval before sharing it with the public. It can be a campaign, music video (no copyrighted music), sketch, etc.

You must share reflections about this process on the Tumblr blog, including what you learned about engaging the public.

Items that you may need to hand in include: 1) storyboard, 2) script, and 3) a document containing this information:

• Research (issues, conversations, etc.)• Write your objectives

• Determine your target audience (demographics)• Create a schedule• Key messages • Determine plan (appropriate social media channels)• Identify influencers (blogrolls, rankings, Klout, PeerIndex)• Evaluate effectiveness (analytics, shares, conversations)

▶REQUIRED Multimedia Interpretation of Topic: 50 pointsThis piece is a Tumblr blog post summarizing your experience or interpretation of your team’s topic. This is a personal blog post — not a traditional news story. Like the online package, it should include a mixture of text, photos, audio and video. Encourage classmates, friends, family and other members of your audience to respond to your post on the Tumblr blog. You will be graded on creativity and the quality of your package elements. Do not use copyrighted materials. Use Vimeo or YouTube. Make sure that any video you produce is SEOed.

Interpretation ideas:

Show an interview and how you felt about the issue while conducting the interview. Write a poem or song about the issue. Assemble a photo gallery related to the topic (e.g., red color blocks, a montage of feet).

Visual engagement:

Did you select the best photos to tell the story? Do we see faces? Are the shots in focus? Are the shots stable? Are the shots framed properly? Is the lighting adequate for the shot? Are the shots varied? Is there anything distracting in the background? Is there a visual of the person speaking? Does your interview or narration match work with your visuals? Are there sequences?

Audio:

Is there natural sound, and is it effective? Is the audio clearly audible? Are there any other distractions (wind, you, echo)? Did you use a microphone? Is the level between the voices balanced? Are the nats at the appropriate level? Are they overpowering your narration?

Visual Editing:

Did you use jump cuts? Are there frames of black? Did you include video sequences? Did you pan or zoom? Are shots too long or short? Are photos edited and prepared for the web?

▶REQUIRED Portfolio: 100 pointsYou will be required to create an online portfolio showcasing your work and expertise. If you already have a quality online portfolio (per instructor approval), you can work on your social media presence, Google presence, work examples and your resume to improve your online presence. You’ll want to start this project early so that you can tweet, use Facebook, etc. throughout the semester, not just a couple of weeks before the due date. Work with the instructor team to assemble your best work from this class, other classes and — most important — professionally published work.

Online portfolio requirementsThis is a portfolio that demonstrates the breadth of your professional work. Be creative!

Examples: http://serenacarpenter.com/?p=1804 http://serenacarpenter.com/?p=1733 http://serenacarpenter.com/?p=1122 http://www.kottke.org/portfolio/portfolio.htmlhttp://www.samuelhoodburke.com/http://www.designedbydanger.com/index.htmlhttp://portfolio.meaganchoi.com/http://nmrozowski.carbonmade.com/http://www.krissixenakis.com/

Resources“Free icons” http://www.iconfinder.net/ultimate and http://www.tripwiremagazine.com/category/icons“Choosing colors with Color Scheme Designer” http://colorschemedesigner.com/Or search Serena’s Delicious page http://www.delicious.com/serena15

Contents of the Portfolio

A home page or introduction page that introduces the site and your work. A brief biography of yourself, including the site purpose Contact information for yourself on a separate page Text of an updated, well-designed resume. Employers should be able download a PDF copy of

your resume from your portfolio. You may also want to have a plain text version of your resume. Some employers, particularly at larger companies with centralized recruiting and hiring operations, require a plain text resume that they enter into a database of possible recruits.

A page of work examples A home button on each page Photos and videos must be prepared for the web. Text descriptions should be adjacent to visual

materials. Search engine optimization basics — e.g., meta tags, headlines, name, text on each page

Grading Criteria

Skillful use of color, typography, white space, and CRAP (principles of web design) "Wow!" factor: Will a potential employer be impressed? Is it original? Content that reflects you professionally If used, correct (standards compliant) use of HTML or CSS Writing, style, mechanics, grammar, spelling Use of elements taught in class

▶REQUIRED Photoshop Banner or Logo: 20 points A banner is the first object people see when visiting your portfolio. It gives them an impression of your website. It is usually the most creative element of the website, and thus requires more time to create than any other element. It will be featured on every single page of your site.

If you have already have a high quality banner, you can create a logo. A logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by organizations and individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition. A logo usually appears on the left side on your banner or in your footer of your website. Your logo can also appear on your resume, business cards, social media, etc.  

Banner examplesDesigning a website banner http://www.entheosweb.com/photoshop/banner.asp

Logo tips50+ Photoshop Tutorials for Logo Design http://www.wsblogz.com/tutorials/50-photoshop-tutorials-for-logo-design/10 Common Mistakes In Logo Designhttp://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/06/25/10-common-mistakes-in-logo-design/

Photoshop banner or logo

This banner or logo will be used for your professional site. Think about a professional color. Must save it as a .jpg and .psd file. Email the .jpg version to your instructor. You will also be

required to post it on the G+ circle to share your work with the class.

Grading Criteria

Typography, color, layout, graphics "Wow!" factor: Will a potential employer be impressed? Is it original? Does it look professional? Do

the images reflect you in the best manner? Does it do a good job of reflecting what you want potential employers to see? Does it look credible? Can you design your entire site around this banner?

▶REQUIRED Quick Hit attendance: 30 points The instructors will present skills-based short courses and breakout sessions on Thursdays throughout the semester. Participation in each Quick Hit is worth 5 points, up to a maximum of 30 points. You will receive a Passport to use to document your attendance.

▶REQUIRED Final Project: Multimedia Website or Digital Magazine  Your work throughout the semester will be published on the class website (http://news.jrn.msu.edu/jrn400f2012/). In addition, teams will use that content to create on a digital magazine for the iPad and develop a multimedia website. If your work is of high quality and has informational value, it will be published in one of these final projects. If it is of superb quality, it will be submitted to journalism competitions.

Everyone will have a different role to play in completing these final projects — including producing content, editing, coding, designing and promoting the project(s). Your involvement throughout the semester will be reflected in points awarded for quality work in the optional assignments, leadership and instructor discretion categories. You will received details about the grading criteria related to this specific assignments when they are officially assigned.

All of this work is based on solid reporting to produce engaging content. Solid reporting means research, aggregating data, making phone calls, etc. Do not take elements from the web. The journalistic and storytelling aspects are more important than the technical requirements, and we will apply more weight to those aspects when grading.

This assignment revolves around the topic your team has been concentrating on. Some team members will be writing stories. Others will be shooting and editing videos. Some will be copy editing. Some will be creating interactive elements for the web or the app. Some will be designing pages. All team members are expected to work hard and do all that is needed to meet the publication goal.

Throughout the semester, we will have many discussions about the project. Those thoughts, pictures and conversations will be posted to a Tumblr blog. The hope is that these conversations will stimulate feedback

from the public. You will promote the microblog in hopes of engaging international and national communities in the conversation. We seek to be transparent, and we welcome contributions from the community on the project.

Research and reportingBased on the conversations, you will report and research a specific area. You will also produce text, visual and public engagement stories based on feedback from the public (e.g., Storify). Consider a conversation sidebars or pages dedicated to engaging the page and the site.

Website/Digital Magazine engagementYou will want to critically think about how to encourage stickiness (time spent on site) to the site and encourage conversations based on their content. You are encouraged to experiment with visual storytelling. The key is to capitalize on the visual aspect. Avoid wallpaper video. For example, a piece on education should only include shots that help understand education, rather than random shots of students working at a desk or walking on campus. Think about how to best communicate the story or information. It is encouraged to go beyond just an interview and a few b-roll shots, especially for those individuals with a broadcast background. This final project must include multimedia in-depth stories related to the subject matter of the final project. These stories cannot be the same angles as the text stories.ReflectionThroughout the process, you will post multimedia and textual reflections about the project and assignments on Tumblr.

Examples of final projects: Multimedia websiteshttp://serenacarpenter.com/?p=1738http://class.cas.msu.edu/jrn436/students_s12/mudgett/body_image/home.html http://class.cas.msu.edu/jrn436/students_s12/kellehan/issue/home.htmlhttp://class.cas.msu.edu/jrn436/students_s12/kurian/Issue/home.htmlhttp://class.cas.msu.edu/jrn436/sample/hamling/Local/local_home.htmlhttp://class.cas.msu.edu/jrn436/sample/palmiter/issue/index.htmlhttp://class.cas.msu.edu/jrn436/students_s12/cafe/cafe.htmlhttp://www.voxmagazine.com/media/multimedia/2011/veterans/index.html

Examples of final projects: Magazine appsOR magazine (college)Urban Plains magazine (college)Cropped: A Brief History of Graphic Design (college)Reader’s Digest TimeNational GeographicOnce

Sites to help you with your digital magazinehttp://joezeffdesign.com/http://garciamedia.com/blog/

Optional Assignments Details

Students will be required to attempt a minimum of 300 optional points. All assignments must be instructor approved. You may earn more than the minimum of 300 points. Point totals represent total points possible. Points awarded will be determined by instructors based on quality of work, ability to meet deadline, time commitment required and other factors. More detailed information about optional assignments is available in an appendix to this syllabus.

▶CONTENT GENERATIONOPTIONAL Additional Online Package ElementsWork in teams or individually to produce a package. Your story idea should be pre-approved by your team leader and instructor. Points will be awarded for quality, depth, originality and ability to meet deadline. Packages should include the following elements (work with your team to assign each element to the most qualified team member):

Lead story (Can be text-, photo-, video-, multimedia- or design-based. Work with your team and instructor to determine the best way to tell your story) 50 points

Additional story elments:

o Text-based sidebar: 20 pointso ASF or Graphic: 20 pointso Multimedia (dependent upon quality and work): 20-100 pointso Links (dependent upon research quality and work): 20 pointso Engagement: 20 points

OPTIONAL Stand-alone ASF & Graphic: 20–50 pointsThis piece will be designed for the multimedia site or the magazine app and will need to have an interactive element. Designer will work closely with producers and developers to make sure the interactive elements function properly. Total points awarded will be determined by the quality and depth of work.

OPTIONAL Stand-alone PhotographyThis is a pool assignment. Students who elect to be photographers may be asked to cover assignments from across the topic teams. Each photo selected for publication will receive points. Photos should include captions.

Photo: 20-50 points Gallery: 50-100 points

Galleries include at least five photographs. In addition to captions with each photo, galleries should including a short text-based explainer (2-5 paragraphs) that introduces the subject and provides necessary background and context.

OPTIONAL Stand-alone Multimedia: 20-100 pointsStudents who produce multimedia write a script, shoot video and edit the project. The multimedia project can consist of text, audio, video and photographs. The point variations reflect the work involved with the project: a montage of interviews to a highly-produced natural sound piece. Multimedia people should strive to create a showcase piece that they can put on their portfolio. The highly-produced pieces should be of Brian Storm quality. Your piece will require topic approval of the instructor and quality approval of both the multimedia editor and the instructor.

OPTIONAL Engagement

Crowdsourced Article: 50 points

This assignment requires you to create stories using this information based on your online research skills and information retrieved from the online public.  

o Monitor and/or participate in communities, seek online data, aggregate and contextualize information from online communities. The idea could stem from these circles and it could be expanded upon through your participation in these community. You must also acknowledge the people that helped you in this process.

o Storify, Google maps, Twitter hashtagged feeds, stories inspired from and reflecting public contribution, etc. Remember information must be verified and vetted by you. The story must be focused and flow logically. Your job is to contextualize the information.  

o Share reflections about this process on the Tumblr blog including what you learned about engaging the public.

Social Media Producer: 100 points

You are expected to engage users on different social media platforms. The social media producer will be responsible for two to three channels. In these channels, the producer will create and share relevant content. It is expected that your efforts show your expertise of social media and your understanding of the people participating in the topic niche. The social media producer is also responsible for making sure that the final project has social media elements.

▶EDITINGOPTIONAL Copy Editing: 5–10 points per story/componentAll content (including graphics, photo captions, etc.) must be copy edited by student teams before reaching the instructors. Copy editors should focus not only on AP style and grammar, but also should take appropriate steps to fact-check content and offer constructive suggestions to improve clarity, sourcing and content structure. Everyone will be expected to do some copy editing. Your grade will be based upon your ability to teach and edit, rather than actually editing of their video. You can work as a team on this assignment, but feedback must your feedback must be documented.

Editing Main Story 10 points Editing Other Components 5 points

▶DESIGN/PRODUCTIONOPTIONAL WordPress website

Webmaster: 50 points

The WordPress webmaster will work with team leaders and instructors to manage and update the class WordPress website, where all completed assignments will be published. Work may include posting or assisting other students to post content (including stories, visuals, multimedia, etc.), working with instructors to manage the back-end system and working with instructors and student leaders to develop the overall look and navigation of the WordPress site.

OPTIONAL Digital magazine

Stylesheet Creator: 50 points

This assignment will be for someone in each section who understands typography, grids, photo placement, use of color, etc. The person who does this assignment will work closely with the app designer or multimedia website producer as well as instructors to create the styles that will be used in the app or multimedia website. Stylesheets will be placed in the resource section of the JRN 400 Google doc so that all have access to it.

Story/Page Design: 50 points

Students who choose to work on this optional assignment will work closely with the design editor on their team. Following the stylesheet is crucial.

App Producer: 150 points

The app producer is responsible for the overall creation of the app. This person must be proficient in InDesign and will work closely with the app designer. This person will assemble the layouts created by the team, add metadata, and publish them into a “folio” format using the Adobe Digital Publishing Suite. The app producer will be responsible for making sure the app is created according to the specs and is finished and sent by the deadline.

OPTIONAL Multimedia website

Site Coder: 150 points

The website coder is responsible for the coding of the entire website. This person must be driven to understand and experiment with code such as HTML5, CSS3, and jQuery. The site and files must be properly SEOed and site folder makeup must be clearly structured. You will must work closely with the designer.

▶LEADERSHIPOPTIONAL Leadership: Points vary by assignmentThis project will create opportunities for student leaders in a variety of areas (team leader, art direction, project manager, etc.). Student leaders will meet weekly to discuss assignments and plan the final projects. The instructors will award points for this work based on quality, time commitment, ability to meet deadlines and other factors. Total points available for each leadership position will vary. Student leaders will receive performance appraisals at regular intervals from the instructor team. Additional leadership positions may be created as needed throughout the semester. Leadership positions include:

Team Leader/Editor: 200 points

Team leaders will work with their topic teams to brainstorm story ideas, plan content, schedule assignments and deadlines (for optional assignments not detailed in the class calendar), work with other students leaders to plan the final project, edit and approve content for publication (with advice from instructors) and work with student leaders to set the editorial direction of their team and the final project(s). Team leaders will lead weekly meetings of their topic teams and will attend meetings with other topic team leaders and instructors.

Copy Chief: 150 points

The copy chief(s) will work with instructors and team leaders to set standards for copy editors and manage copy flow through the editing process. The copy chief(s), working with team leaders and instructors, are one of the last lines of defense to keep errors of fact, grammar and style from being published on the course website and in the final project. Copy chiefs likely will spend more time editing than most other students and will be involved with proofing final projects.

App Lead Designer: 150 points

The app designer is responsible for the overall look of the app. This person must be proficient in InDesign and will work closely with the app producer. This person will work with the stylesheet creator to help him or her set up styles. The app designer will also work with the content creators to make sure that interactive content ideas are understood, and then this person will work closely with the the app producer so that the app is created according to specs.

Website Lead Designer 150 points

The website producer will be responsible for Photoshop elements, visual design, typography and team pages, such as the contact and the resources content. This person should be skilled and creative when using Photoshop. This person is the visual and detail backbone of the site. You will must work closely with the coder.

Multimedia Editor: 50 points

This role requires you to manage multimedia assignments and approve and edit scripts of multimedia producers. You will also provide extensive feedback showing them on what specific changes need to be made to the video before it is submitted to the instructor. Please provide all feedback in comment changes on a Google doc. Your grade will be based upon your ability to teach and edit, rather than actually editing of their video. You can work as a team on this assignment, but feedback must your feedback must be documented.  

Photography Director: 50 points

Working with the team leader and instructors, the photography director will work with photographers to manage the visual needs of the course website and final projects. This may include editing photos, coordinating assignments necessary to complete the final project with photographers and working with student leaders to set the editorial direction.

Community Engagement Director: 50 points

You are expected to use this project as an experiment to lead efforts to observe and engage users on different social media platforms or encourage engagement offline. Those platforms include Facebook, YouTube, Digg, Reddit, Twitter, Pinterest, Quora, online communities, etc.

This exercise to encourages you to think about understanding the public more precisely and mobilize them. This position is more about learning about other communities and sharing content in relevant offline and online communities. You can identify local and national community organizations to work with in order to understand the team topic on a deeper level. You must share knowledge and observations with the topic team, the social media producer and on Tumblr.    

1. Use interactive or social media to produce a piece that engages people beyond the page. These elements can including creating an item that encourages public contributions, volunteer efforts or conversations with the creators of this site or other people interested in this topic.

2. Participation on social media channels is expected. It can include a post about an article related to the project, related photo and caption, useful links, reflection pieces, etc.

3. Share reflections about this process on the Tumblr blog including what you learned about engaging the public.

▶Instructor Discretion 100 pointsInstructors may award additional points at their discretion for work that goes above-and-beyond assignment requirements.

SCHEDULE with readings Use this in conjunction with the grid. Subject to change. Please check this often.

Week 1    08.30, Thursday – Room 2431) You, me, the team, and the syllabus, 2) class structure and overview, and 3) G+ and Google HangoutsMove to Homeroom: 1) Complete the survey, 2) sign up for a professional Gmail address and 3) Post a brief personal bio on a G+ class page. Tell us a little bit about yourself — your year in school, your hobbies, your hopes with this class, etc. and 4) post your reactions to our focus this semester (mental health) and include your ideas to make the semester successful. What topics would you like to cover? Post potential story ideas as well. Be creative. Try using social media search engines to begin identifying topics: http://blogsearch.google.com/, http://boardreader.com/, https://twitter.com/#!/search-home and

http://technorati.com/

08.31, Friday – Serena Carpenter/Jeremy SteeleLecture: 1) Search and information gathering, 2) crowdsourcing, 3) research and 4) what is mental healthReadings: “Why ‘Solutions Journalism’ Matters, toohttp://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/20/why-solutions-journalism-matters-too/?src=tp“How to verify — and when to publish — news accounts posted on social media”http://www.poynter.org/how-tos/newsgathering-storytelling/138495/how-to-verify-and-when-to-publish-news-accounts-posted-on-social-media/Homework Due 09.04: Prepare three well-researched topics, including any corroborating links, and be ready to post to the class G+ circle at the beginning of class.

Week 2           09.04, Tuesday – HomeroomLab: Post your three topic pitches and +1 posts you would want to work on. Comment critically, specifically and thoughtfully on the topics that intrigue you. Use your own research to challenge the pitches and suggest interactive content and public engagement ideas for the other pitches.        09.06, Thursday – HomeroomLab: 1) Assign Online Package/Multimedia Promotion & explain Online Package Planning Guide 2) Review pitches on G+ and select your top three choices and 3) Post additional research, links and comments to your top three choices. The team instructors will assign topics to each group by Tuesday.

09.07, Friday – Serena CarpenterLecture: 1) mental health panel 2) community engagement, 3) project promotion Readings:  “A Facebook Story: A Mother’s Joy and a Family’s Sorrow,” The Washington Post“Why The Washington Post Used Facebook Updates to Tell A Mother’s Story,” PoynterHomework Due 09.13: Online Package Planning Guide due at beginning of class (one paper copy to editor and one to instructor)

Week 3  09.11, Tuesday – Topic rooms are decided. First day in Topic TeamsLab: Brainstorm story ideas with Topic Team members. Article/promotion ideas due on G+ by the end of class    09.13, Thursday – Jeremy SteeleQuick Hits: Aggregation and ethicsLab: Online Package Planning Guide due by beginning of class

09.14, Friday – Serena CarpenterLecture: 1) Writing & structuring content for the web (hyperlinks, summary decks, headlines) 2) search engine optimization 3) article information design/typography 4) assign Multimedia Interpretation of Topic 5) mental health panelReadings:“Usability expert: BBC publishes the world’s best headlines” http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=31&aid=162650“The Ten Mistakes” http://www.holtuncensored.com/hu/the-ten-mistakes/ “Linking in Journalism” http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/13/business/media/13reach.html? _r=4&ref=media&oref=slogin&oref=slogin&oref=slogin“H is for Hypertext: What Makes a Good Link”2/122“Twelve Tips for Optimizing your Site for Search Engines” http://www.kcnn.org/modules/seo/ “At Yahoo, Using Searches to Steer News Coverage,” New York Times   

Week 4         09.18, TuesdayLab: Budget meeting, team work

09.20, Thursday - Cheryl Pell

Quick Hits: InDesign, Part I

09.21, Friday – Darcy Greene/Cheryl PellLecture: 1) How to frame visuals, 2) alternative story forms and 2) post to Twitpic with professional Twitter account. Use the #jrn400 hashtag. Please provide a cutline for each selected category photo.Photo Shoot: Shoot three properly framed photos that tell a story and shoot one creative photo. The three photos should be related to one another (Wide, Medium, Close). The best photos will be judged by the class and receive a prize!Readings: “Photos as Web Content” http://www.useit.com/alertbox/photo-content.html “How to Take Great Photographs”http://www.advancedphotography.net/great-photographs-2/“Eyetracking the News,” http://www.poynter.org/extra/Eyetrack/keys_03.html Due 9.27: Individual article (No single spaces) and multimedia promotion scripts due to student editors

Week 5           09.25, TuesdayLab: Budget meeting, team work

09.27, Thursday – Jeremy SteeleQuick Hits: 1) Copyediting  2) saving, labeling files for web

09.28, Friday – Serena Carpenter(Darcy Greene & Cheryl Pell may both be gone this day)Lecture: 1) Online video trends 2) broadcast v. online, and 3) assign PortfolioReading: “The Video Explosion” http://www.ajr.org/Article.asp?id=4428 .Interview with Brian Storm http://www.peachpit.com/podcasts/episode.aspx?e=36063d0e-cda5-4ea9-8d20- c6b04e4c9567           

Week 6          10.02, TuesdayLab: Budget meeting, team work

10.04, Thursday – Cheryl PellQuick Hits: InDesign, Part 2

10.05 Friday - Darcy Greene and Cheryl PellLecture: 1) Typography, 2) web and app design and 3) magazine app trendsReadings: Popular web design trends 2011 http://www.entheosweb.com/inspiration/web_design_trends_2011/default.aspTo a “T” and Typomania http://www.typeculture.com/academic_resource/movies/ HTML Color Nameshttp://www.w3schools.com/html/html_colornames.asp“Top Ten Mistakes in Web Design”http://www.useit.com/alertbox/9605.html“Biggest Mistakes in Web Design 1995-2015”http://www.webpagesthatsuck.com/biggest-mistakes-in-web-design-1995-2015.htmlColor Scheme Designer http://colorschemedesigner.com/ Due 10.09: Student-edited version of articles & edited promotional videos due to instructors

Week 7         10.09, TuesdayLab: Budget meeting, team work

10.11 Thursday – Serena Carpenter/Darcy GreeneQuick Hits: 1) HTML5 2) Dreamweaver basicsSupplemental: Using Dreamweaver, http://multimedia.journalism.berkeley.edu/tutorials/webdesign/dreamweaver/HTML5 Cheatsheet, http://woorkup.com/2009/12/16/html5-visual-cheat-sheet-reloaded/

HTML5 Please, http://html5please.com/

10.12 Friday - SpeakersLecture: 1) Working in a digital media environment 2) mobile trends 3) assign Photoshop banner/LogoDue 10.18: Multimedia Interpretation of Topic

Week 8         10.16, TuesdayLab: Budget meeting, team work

10.18, Thursday – Darcy GreeneQuick Hits: 1) Photoshop basics 2) preparing photos for the webReadings: Photographic palettes http://24ways.org/2006/photographic-palettes “30 Complete Photoshop Guides for Beginners”http://10steps.sg/tutorials/photoshop/30-complete-photoshop-guides-for-beginners/Supplemental: The Options Bar http://www.photoshopessentials.com/photoshop-text/photoshop-text- options-bar.phpCharacter Palette http://www.photoshopessentials.com/photoshop-text/photoshop-text-character-palette.php Introducing Photoshop Layers http://www.photoshopessentials.com/basics/layers/layers-intro.php Logo Typeface and Art http://www.peachpit.com/articles/article.aspx?p=20939&seqNum=4

10.19, Friday – Cheryl PellLecture: 1) Privacy and 2) location-based mediaReadings: Julia Angwin, “The Web’s New Gold Mine: Your Secrets“; Leah Betancourt, “How Companies Are Using Your Social Media Data“; boyd & Hargittai (2010), “Facebook Privacy Settings: Who Cares?”; The Wall Street Journal, “Getting Personal, But Too Personal?“; Papacharissi (2010), “Privacy as a Luxury Commodity“

Week 9         10.23 TuesdayLab: Budget meeting, team work

10.25 Thursday – Cheryl PellQuick Hits: Making magazine apps interactive with InDesign

10.26 Friday – Darcy Greene/Jeremy SteeleLecture: 1) Analytics 2) website dissection

Week 10          10.30, TuesdayLab: Budget meeting, team work

11.01, Thursday – Serena CarpenterQuick Hits: CSS3, Part 1

11.02, Friday – Jeremy SteeleLecture: Individual professional presenceBring on 11.09: Ten copies of your resume

Week 11         11.06, TuesdayLab: Budget meeting, team work

11.08, Thursday – Serena CarpenterQuick Hits: CSS3, Part 2

11.09, Friday – Darcy GreeneLecture: 1) Resume 2) careers

Week 12         11.13, TuesdayLab: Budget meeting, team work

11.15, Thursday – All instructorsQuick Hits: Banner check-up

11.16 Friday — Serena CarpenterLecture: Future trends in digital mediaDue on 11.20: Photoshop Banner/Logo for portfolio. Post “saved for the web” .jpg on the class G+ page.

Week 13         11.20 TuesdayLab: Work on

11.22 and 11.23No class – Thanksgiving Break

Week 14      11.27 TuesdayLab: Work on projects    11.29 ThursdayLab: Work on projects   

11.30, Friday: Office consultationsDue on 12.06: Final multimedia and app project due at the beginning of class

Week 15  12.04, TuesdayLab: Work on projects

12.06, ThursdayLab: Work on projects

12.07, Friday: Office consultations

Exam Week 12.10 – 12.14Portfolios are due on the day of the final exam. Students will show and defend their content and design choices to the class. Post your portfolio URLs on the G+ page. Defend your design logic and share any advice on G+.